Die Shellsuit, Die!

An Alternative Music Magazine

Savior (Single)

Rise Against

2008s ’Appeal To Reason’ didn’t quite bring the success to Chicago’s Rise Against that many thought it would, especially after the critical acclaim and commercial success of ’The Sufferer and the Witness’.

However it proved beyond doubt that Rise Against are the best at what they do, writing passionate, political hardcore/punk songs that attract the dedicated and entertain the more casual rock fans. The band return to these shores next month for a number of large shows, bringing Thursday and Poison The Well with them, and to support this tour they are releasing ’Savior’.

Whilst it is far from the best song on the album, it works well as a showcase for the band. It starts off slowly, leading you to believe it’s going to be one of the slower tracks that tend to show up at the end of Rise Against albums. However, thunderous drums and the addition of crashing guitars herald a typical Rise Against number. The trademarks that make the band so unique are present, the chorus that demands to be screamed at the top of your lungs, verses that make you throw yourself about with reckless abandon and the bridge that slows it all down before the final chorus. Despite this, it lacks a certain passion, the vitriol that makes Tim McIlrath such a compelling vocalist is not as prominent as in their best work, and instead there is more emotion, which is slightly at odds with the pace of the song.

The success of Rise Against is well deserved; however, whilst this is representative of the bands work, it is far from their best. The fact that the single is a download only release is perhaps an admission that this is a relatively pointless release, coming a whole year after the album on which it features. If you’re already a Rise Against fan then you’ll surely already have this, if the band has thus far passed you by then this is well worth checking out before visiting the bands superb back catalogue.